节目资讯
刊物:空中英语教室
日期:2014-03-05
难易度:Low
关键字:talented, perform, passion, opportunity, go to one's head, Broadway,
Nickelodeon
Today we are learning about a young star who greets challenges with a smile,
Ariana Grande.
She is a sweet girl with a wonderful voice, and she has been performing as long
as she could remember.
Fortunately, she doesn't let being famous go to her head.
She loves everything she does - acting, singing, writing and producing music.
Let's learn more about this star in the next part of our reading.
Ariana Grande.
"I was eight years old when I started," says Ariana, "and then I just never
stopped....
I've always loved music. ... It's my passion." It wasn't too long before
Ariana's passion turned into a career opportunity.
At age 14, she won a role in the Broadway musical 13!
Two weeks after 13 closed, Ariana was in Los Angeles filming a kids' show on
Nickelodeon.
In her time off, she performed in another musical and began working on an album.
(Chinese).
And now let's go to our teachers.
Thank you, Michelle.
Well, actually, I'd like us to take a moment to learn a little bit about
Broadway.
Broadway is actually the name of a street.
That's right.
It's the longest street in the world.
Do you know how long it is, Gabe?
Yes, I do, Carolyn.
It's about 241 kilometers long.
That's long! But I don't think our lesson today is talking about a street.
Well, kind of.
Part of this street is home to the main entertainment area in New York City.
There are many theaters on that part of the street.
So you can go see a play on Broadway.
And there are a lot to choose from.
There are over 40 theaters, and that's not all.
There's also something called off-Broadway.
Ah, yes.
If something is off-Broadway, that means that it is also a theater performance,
but it is not one of the theaters found in the Broadway entertainment district
of New York.
Off-Broadway performances are also usually less expensive, from the production
of the props to the script to the actors, and most importantly, the tickets.
They also might have unusual stories or songs.
But that doesn't mean that off-Broadway performances aren't worth seeing.
There are lots of great shows out there.
And since the tickets are a bit cheaper, you can see more performances.
True.
Well, you know, Ariana was also in a Broadway musical called 13.
And we see something interesting in our lesson.
It says "two weeks after 13 closed." Carolyn, how can a play close?
Great question.
So let's look at that word "close." When we use this word, we usually think of a
door closing or maybe a store closing.
And the meaning is similar here.
If a play closes, that means that it will not be performed again.
So the performance has closed down or closed its doors.
You can't see it in theaters anymore, which is really sad.
I wanted to see Ariana on Broadway.
I'm sorry, Gabe, but that musical is closed.
But don't worry, you can still see her on TV.
OK. Well, I think I will.
Right now, though, it's time for us to enjoy something with Steve and Ken in the
Information Cloud.
There are some cities in the U.S. you'll almost never hear of being referred to
by their official name.
Los Angeles is one.
OK. Instead of Los Angeles, you almost always hear people refer to it as LA.
And you pronounce it as if it's a word, not two letters: LA.
I'll be flying to LA next week.
OK. Another U.S. city Americans like to use initials for is Washington, D.C.
And the initials are, of course, D.C.
D.C. actually stands for District of Columbia.
And that's a name you never hear anyone say.
So you'll be flying from D.C. to LA next week?
Yep, that's right.
Another way we refer to city names is by an abbreviated or shortened form.
Of course abbreviations are used because they're faster and easier to say.
That's right.
Why say Las Vegas when you can simply say Vegas?
Or San Francisco if San Fran will suffice?
So instead of saying all six syllables of Indianapolis, a lot of people simply
say Indy.
And instead of Philadelphia, it's Philly.
And probably the cutest of them all - the mini apple, which is short for
Minneapolis.
But keep in mind, these are nicknames, and so should be reserved for informal
conversation only.
(Chinese).
Thanks a lot, guys.
Well, there is always great information in that Information Cloud.
Yes, there is.
Now back to Ariana, she is very busy.
Yeah, she is.
She went from performing in a Broadway musical to filming a TV show.
And in her time off, she was in another musical.
She was. And you just used a great phrase from our article: time off.
What does this mean, Gabe?
Well, time off means the time when you aren't working. It's your free time.
So you could say: I only have time off during the weekends.
Or I will have time off next Friday, so we can see a movie.
So time off here is a noun.
But it can also be used as a verb.
You can take time off.
Right. You could say: I need to take time off to go to the doctor.
Or I want to take time off to go on vacation.
Oh, me, too.
No. No, Gabe, it was just an example.
Oh, right.
Well, in Ariana's time off... she didn't really have time off, like me, I don't
have time off.
When she wasn't filming for TV, she was still working and performed in another
musical.
Wow! She is a very hard-working woman.
It seems like she really enjoys what she does.
She also began working on her first album, which came out last fall.
Hey, that's a good word to look at: album.
Album can be used several different ways, but it means a collection of one type
of thing that is all in one place.
So you could have a book that is an album.
Maybe you have a photo album, a book filled with pictures; or a stamp album, a
book filled with stamps.
That's right. But in our lesson we're talking about a music album.
So this is a collection of songs that are recorded and released together.
Now many singers like to release a Christmas album that has them singing 10 or
so Christmas songs on one CD.
One of my favorite bands, Future of Forestry, released some songs for Christmas
last year.
And you're right, this is a fairly common thing to do.
Now we've learned a lot in our lesson today.
Let's take some time to review with Linda in the Editor's Summary.
Today we learned that 20-year-old Ariana Grande has been compared to the famous
Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey because of her singing ability.
She grew up in Florida and has been singing and dancing since she was a child.
In fact, she performed in a Broadway musical at 14.
And she followed that with a kids' show on Nickelodeon in Los Angeles.
Thank you so much, Linda.
Well, we've had a great day learning a little about Ariana Grande.
But there is so much more to learn about this young star.
So be sure to join us again tomorrow as we continue our lesson on Ariana Grande
right here at Studio Classroom.
We'll see you then.
(Music).